To Friends and Love
by phoenixfireshadow
Summary: 7th year had been terrible, not just for the trio but also for Draco Malfoy. A party on May 1, an accidental kiss, how exactly did Hermione Granger fall in love with Draco Malfoy? And really, the flowers were a bit too much.
**A/N I know, I know, I should be updating Hollywood Complications, but this came to me after I had done a math test and it was too adorable for me to stop! Happy belated birthday EllaDaughterofAthena! We've been friends since third grade and I don't regret a single moment. You're amazing and WAY too smart for your own good! This is for you. =)**

 **Disclaimer:I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters mentioned below**

* * *

He'd brought her another bouquet of flowers. There were red roses and white water lilies and that's all she had seen before she slammed the door in his face.

"Hermione? Hermione, I'm really sorry! I overstepped and can we please be friends? You know, in honor of tomorrow and all." Tomorrow? What was tomorrow? Why wouldn't he go away? Sure the flowers were nice and she knew any other girl would be happy to take her place, but now her entire room smelled like a botanical garden and... and she wasn't upset that he had done it. But still, she had a boyfriend, one who surely wasn't checking his post because she'd send him a what seemed like a billion letters, and she just couldn't do this. She couldn't. She really shouldn't. She opened the door.

Draco Malfoy faltered for a second in his pleading, his hand midway through the motion of knocking on the door. "What do you want?" she snapped at him when he didn't immediately say anything.

Ugh, she shielded her eyes from the sunlight. It was far too bright; she prefered darker rooms. That was one of the reasons she had never slept by the windows in Gryffindor Tower. "I, uh, got you these." She blinked as Draco thrust the flowers at her. Automatically saying thank you, she turned to look in her room to find an empty spot where she could put them. "Although," Draco also peered into the room, "I suppose you don't have any use for them."

She fidgeted, the once dissolved tension had come back again and it was making their conversation extremely awkward. "So..." she trailed off. "So," oh Merlin, he was looking at her with those intense grey eyes, "I came to apologize. Although, after the last couple billion times failed, I wanted to quit, but anyways... sorry, I overstepped my boundaries and you have a boyfriend so..." He swallowed.

"I suppose I'm sorry too. I mean, that was a bit rude for me to have been ignoring you." He gave her an incredulous look. "You do realize that when someone apologizes, you're supposed to accept their apology and not apologize as well." Just like that, the tension was gone.

"Oh shut up, it's called polite manners. Something that you don't have."

"I am polite! Trust me, my mother spend months teaching me and bribing me to be polite." He rolled his eyes.

"Bribing you? With what?" She was genuinely curious, her parents just made her do it. Sometimes there would be rewards but most of the time, they would say that hard work was its own reward.

"Candy, mostly. Sometimes playdates with other kids but I've always had a sweet tooth." Well, her parents were dentists so that was out of the question. And in primary, she didn't exactly make lots of friends.

"Yeah, I've been noticing the mysterious _candy_ wrappers just lying on the ground, some caramel, some vanilla, but all candy." She looked at him with raised eyebrows. He stuck his tongue out. She stuck it out right back at him.

She supposed her blossoming friendship-was that what it was?- started when he had also returned to finish his last year of school. Apparently, having Vol-Riddle in his house meant that he couldn't get much education so he returned to Hogwarts. Somehow, the two were paired up as Heads because all the other seventh year prefects were in awe of the two. Or fear. She really couldn't tell the difference sometimes.

They had argued, they had screamed, but they had somehow managed to work together. After a particularly bad argument, where he had called her a "bushy-haired swot who thinks she's the freaking queen of the world and thinks that everyone wants her help because they were all incompetent" and she had called him a "pale freak who was a racist and a terrible human being who got savage pleasure in being mean to people," they had gone their ways, each set to ignore the other.

But then tragedy struck. Narcissa Malfoy, Draco's mother who had saved Harry's life, had been attacked by people still convinced that they were Death Eaters. And the Healers didn't know whether she would live or die. When Draco got the letter and had collapsed, sobbing on the ground, it was Hermione who had held him, and had dried his tears, and had made sure he still ate and drank and went to his classes. It had become the beginning of their strange friendship. And when her father had fallen ill with cancer and the doctors predicted he wouldn't make it, he had been her support as she cried and stopped her from almost becoming a walking corpse.

They were closer than most other friends, they had discussed problems in their lives, shared secrets and fears, and argued about everything. And during the few times Hermione felt like being honest to herself, they weren't close enough. And then Draco had kissed her.

They were walking outside because Hermione had wanted to feel the nice breezes spring had brought and they had been talking about their lives after and she had been talking about maybe wanting to go into law and she had spun to ask him what he wanted to do and he had kissed her. And she had been stunned for a moment before coming to her senses and shoving him away. She had touched her lips and stared at him and right when he said, "Hermione, I'm-I'm sorry," she had her wand at his throat. "I have a boyfriend, you ponce. We're friends but that does NOT give you the right to-to kiss me." And then she had ran for the hills.

She had ignored him for the past week, but it had been extremely hard. He had showered her with flowers and notes and even a pretty bracelet that she had rather liked but she had a boyfriend. A boyfriend who was her best mate and had always been there for her. A boyfriend who left his smelly clothes all over and rarely came to visit. A boyfriend who hadn't answered any of the mail she had sent him. Maybe that was part of being an Auror. Or maybe... she never let her mind trail down that way. She had always like Ron Weasley, her red-haired, temperamental mate who was kind to her. Kind. Being her friend made him kind, she supposed. She glanced up to Draco, who was watching her with his piercing grey eyes. Ron would have still been talking, oblivious to the thoughts in her head.

"Pardon me for a moment." She ran back inside, clutching a mirror with a single shard of glass inside the wooden frame. Aberforth had given it to her when he had heard that she would be split from her friends. "Harry? Hello? Please be there..." Harry Potter's green eye flashed against the screen.

"Hermione? Hey-"

"Harry, where's Ron? I need to speak with him. Right now!"

"Right, um, Ron? Ron, it's Hermione. Ron, she wants to talk to you." Ron's face came onto the shard of glass.

"Hermione? Hermione, you-"

"Ron-we-need-to-break-up." She said it all in one breath.

"What Hermione? I couldn't hear you properly, I thought you said you wanted to break up. Isn't that funny?" He laughed and then awkwardly stopped when he realized that Hermione wasn't joining in. "Hermione?"

"Ron, we do need to break up. I really did like you but looking back, I realized that it was just a schoolgirl crush. You're more like a brother and a best mate to me, like Harry, and I honestly don't think this is going to work. You're an amazing guy but somewhere out there, there's a girl who likes you for who you are."

"There's another guy out there, isn't there? Tell me who it is, I'll break their bones!" Ron's face was slowly turning purple and Hermione closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Ron, even if there is another guy, this wouldn't have worked out. Will you please calm down and can we talk this out like the adults we are?" She wondered where Harry was. He had probably ran when Ron came onto the screen. The Boy who Lived knew when it was safe to eavesdrop and when it might result in death.

Ron took a deep breath. "Ok." She stared at him, stunned. She had been expecting a much bigger fight but this, this was compliance. "Besides, Lavender Brown has been looking really hot lately."

Hermione closed her eyes for a moment and then said stiffly, "Goodbye Ron." She spun around only to see Draco raising an eyebrow at her. "Should I ask?" he asked. "No." She smiled, a Slytherin smile that made Draco shiver. "Sooo," he drawled, "you don't seem to have a boyfriend. Would this be too soon or should I make my move?" He took her hand and slowly, bending slightly, kissed the back of it. He smirked at the frozen Hermione. She then cocked her head at him and said, "I'm going to the library. Maybe you could think of an answer to your question while I'm gone." She dropped his hand and headed out of the dorm.

Draco watched her leave and then hatched a plan. It would require some quick spells but he knew where to find them. "Oh princess, I've always known the answer."

* * *

When Hermione had returned, finished with all of her homework, she had expected to crash and sleep, maybe argue with Draco for a bit. She hadn't expected there to be a party thrown.

She had swung open the portrait that served as a door to the dorm and climbed through and... looked up. Her mouth drifted open as she looked around and saw people-a few she didn't even know!-, streamers of all colors, and food carried by house elves. "Hermione!" She spun around to see Draco, laughing and talking with Theodore Nott. He waved her over, and feeling a bit conspicuous, Hermione made her way over to them. When she finally got there, Theo nodded at her, quietly said something to Draco who nodded, and left.

Hermione looked at Draco. He was smiling and his angular pointy face seemed happier than normal. The smile faded when Hermione asked, "What's all this?" She touched a streamer on the wall, and then looked at him. "Today's May 1 Granger. Tomorrow's the one year anniversary of the war." He looked concerned. "Didn't you know this?" Hermione nodded and then tried to grab a drifting balloon. She missed and Draco grabbed it for her, being surprisingly gentle. He gave it to her, and she tried to tie it around her wrist. After watching her fail, Draco grabbed the string and slowly tied it around her wrist. Every touch was slow and gentle though his hand was warm.

"Thank you." She said, once he was finished. "Welcome." She looked around again, still in awe of how he had managed to finish this much in such a short amount of time. "They should be here any moment." Draco was looking at the magically adapted watch on his wrist. "Who?" She frowned. "Draco, this is nice and all but how many people did you invite?" People were coming entering the room in flocks. Most of them were third years and above but a few younger students were there. "Just the-" "IT'S HARRY POTTER!" The fireplace came to life, and out came Harry Potter and Ron Weasley.

Hermione ran, shoving people out of the way, to tackle her best mates in the world. They hugged her back and Ron grinned while Harry coughed. Despite using the Floo system so many times, he was still unused to it. "It's good to see you Hermione." Harry said and she grinned, feeling right at home with her friends. "So, er, we have broken up right?" Ron said, looking slightly apprehensive. "Yes, Ronald. We have." Ron nodded and then said, "I'm hungry. Where's the food?" Right at home indeed.

* * *

A magical clock was in the middle of the room. 25 minutes till May 2. Hermione was slightly tipsy, but better than most other people, some who were completely drunk. 24 minutes till May 2. Draco came out of nowhere, with his hair messed up, and red lipstick all over his face. She felt a slight burn in her stomach when she saw the lipstick but ignored it. She knew Draco didn't have a girlfriend, but that just meant that he was available.

He was rubbing at the lipstick with a handkerchief but with no avail. She suppressed a snicker, and only said, "Who caused this?" "Pansy. Mistletoe. Figure it out," he grouched. He rubbed even harder. "Try tergeo." Hermione suggested. "Also, mistletoe? It's May." Draco cast the spell. 23 minutes to May 2. "Ask Pansy. I swear she's gone insane. Last I heard she was dating Marcus Flint but apparently not." She laughed. Draco swayed slightly, and she realized that he was slightly tipsy. "I thought you didn't drink."

"I needed some of that Gryffindor courage." He looked at her and said, "I don't think it's working."

"Why?"

"Hermione, will you dance with me?" Draco held out a hand. 22 minutes till May 2. "Yes." Draco's eyes widened, and he swallowed. "Warning," she said, "I'm a terrible dancer." Draco smirked. "Well, good thing I'm good enough at dancing to make up for you." Glaring at him, she took his hand, and they took up a waltz position. "Just follow my lead."

12 minutes till May 2

Hermione hesitantly lay her head on Draco's chest. He just held her tightly.

6 minutes till May 2

Hermione lifted her head off of Draco's chest so that he could twirl her, and then she called him an idiot. A transfusion of asphodel would make a potion's side effects less, not more.

30 seconds till May 2

They were silent, and then Draco said, "Thank you. Thank you for-for not being the prejudiced jerk I was to you and for being my friend. Thanks." She looked at him, her eyes blazing, and she said, "Thank you for being here. And anyone would have done it." He looked at her, slowing their dance until they came to a stop. "No." He whispered. "They wouldn't have." And as the clock ticked midnight and the room erupted into cheers, Draco kissed Hermione. And this time, she let it continue.


End file.
